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Virgil-ILPhoto: Bnperdue2010 · CC BY-SA 4.0
B+Hazard risk
Natural hazards in Virgil Township · FEMA

On FEMA’s figures, Virgil Township faces less hazard damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns, mostly from river and rain flooding

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Virgil Township gets a B+ for hazard risk: lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns. Most of that expected damage is river and rain flooding (81%), then tornadoes (14%). FEMA’s files show no paid flood insurance claims here.

River and rain flooding 81%Tornadoes 14%Earthquakes 4%

Graded on FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value (NRI v1.20, December 2025), weighted by where residents live; flood claims are shown, not graded. How hazard risk is graded

less than 74%of U.S. townsLess damageMoreExpected yearly damage per dollar of building, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade
Hazard risk
B+
in Illinois · lower than 74% of U.S. towns
Main hazard
River and rain flooding
81% of expected building damage
Flood claims
0
paid since 1978 · $0
Disasters paid out here
2
of 13 declared for Kane County
By hazard

What Virgil Township faces

Each hazard’s share of the building damage FEMA expects here, and how its rate compares with the rest of the country.

River and rain flooding

81%of expected building damage
About average · lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about 2 times a year in the area

Tornadoes

14%of expected building damage
Well above average · higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts
Recorded about once every 11 years in the area
Smaller shares here
 Earthquakes Hail Strong wind Lightning Ice storms Hurricanes Wildfire Winter storms Cold waves Heat waves Landslides
FEMA models no building damage here
Coastal floodingAvalanchesTsunamisVolcanic activity
People, not buildings.Counting harm to people as well as buildings, FEMA’s model puts cold waves at 16% of Virgil Township’s expected losses. Cold waves do little damage to buildings (0.0%), so they aren’t part of the grade.

Shares are of FEMA’s expected building damage, the measure the grade uses; ranks compare each hazard’s building-damage rate with all 85,154 U.S. census tracts. In FEMA’s terms, river and rain flooding is FEMA’s “Inland Flooding” (rivers and streams overflowing their banks, or rain overwhelming drainage). FEMA defines coastal flooding as high or rising tides and storm surge, so surge damage is counted there. Drought isn’t listed: FEMA counts its losses in crops only.

Flood risk changes street by street. Check a specific address on FEMA’s flood map, and ask about flood insurance before you buy.
Hazard risk grade

What’s behind Virgil Township’s grade

River and rain flooding is 81% of the building damage FEMA expects in Virgil Township, and Virgil Township’s rate of river and rain flooding damage is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts. Next is tornadoes at 14% (higher than 81% of U.S. census tracts).

Where Virgil Township sits
Virgil Township
Least damageMiddleMost damage

B+ lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns (21,298).

All of Virgil Township’s residents live in one census tract; the figures are that tract’s.

What drives the damage to buildings
River and rain flooding81%Tornadoes14%Earthquakes4%Everything else1%

In dollars, FEMA expects about $1.1M a year in losses across Virgil Township: $657K to buildings, the rest to people and crops.

Shared tract.All of Virgil Township’s 1,921 residents (2020 census) live in one census tract, which it shares with Big Rock township (1,768 residents) and Kaneville township (1,156 residents) and Big Rock village (1,104 residents) and Kaneville village (452 residents) and Virgil village (289 residents). FEMA publishes its model by tract, so the rate and the hazard mix are the tract’s, the same for all of them. The flood claims below are the township’s own.
A shared figure. The grade describes the whole tract, not each street in it, and FEMA’s model is an average year for today’s buildings, not a record: the claims below are the record.

How TownRatings grades hazard risk →

Flood insurance claims

Does Virgil Township flood? No paid flood claims on record

FEMA’s records show no paid flood insurance claims in Virgil Township. That’s not a promise: most homes don’t carry flood insurance, so small floods go unrecorded.

of homes in flood zones are insured
of all homes are insured
No community discount

Virgil Township isn’t in FEMA’s Community Rating System, which cuts flood insurance up to 45% in towns that do extra flood-proofing.

Insurance rates: Kane County.
Disasters

2 federal disasters brought FEMA money to Virgil Township

Disasters that paid out in Virgil Township itself (aid to households or repair grants to Virgil Township), newest first, with that year’s flood claims.

  1. 2000Illinois Winter Snow Storms$6K to Virgil Township for repairs
  2. 1999Il-winter Storm 1/1/99$6K to Virgil Township for repairs
Disasters declared, by decade
Paid out in Virgil TownshipKane County only

Kane County has had 13 natural disasters declared by the President since 1953, most often severe storms, then floods. Not counted: the 2005 Hurricane Katrina evacuee emergency, which covered counties that took in evacuees.

Were you here?

Old photos of Virgil Township after a storm or flood belong in the town’s history. Add one, or share what you remember below.

Add to the Virgil Township archive →
Next door

Virgil Township and its neighbors

Virgil Township is 5th of the 6 graded towns here, from least expected damage per building to most. Tap a town to see its hazards.

Campton Township: hazard risk B+Kaneville Township: hazard risk B+Cortland Township: hazard risk A−Lily Lake: hazard risk A−Burlington Township: hazard risk ACampton TownshipKaneville TownshipCortland TownshipLily LakeBurlington TownshipVirgil Township
Lowest fifthSecondMiddleFourthHighest fifth
TownHazard riskMostly (buildings)Flood claims
Burlington TownshipAless damage than 87%river and rain flooding—
Cortland TownshipA−less damage than 84%river and rain flooding2
Lily LakeA−less damage than 77%river and rain flooding—
Kaneville TownshipB+less damage than 74%river and rain flooding2
Virgil TownshipB+less damage than 74%river and rain flooding0
Campton TownshipB+less damage than 70%river and rain flooding—

Hazard risk = FEMA’s expected yearly building damage per dollar of building value, vs. the 21,298 U.S. towns we grade; the map is shaded by fifths of the same scale. Flood claims = paid federal flood insurance claims on record.

Be ready

Get ready for what Virgil Township faces

A short kit for the hazards that drive the building damage here, what to check before you buy, and where neighbors get alerts.

When the river rises
  • Turn around at flooded roads: a foot of moving water can carry off a car.
  • Flood insurance usually takes 30 days to start, so buy it before the forecast.
  • Keep papers and medicines up high, in a grab-and-go bag.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Tornado warnings
  • Pick your spot now: the lowest floor, an inside room, no windows.
  • A watch means be ready; a warning means take cover now.
  • Keep shoes and a flashlight by the bed.
More from Ready.gov ↗
Before you buy or rent
  • Look up the address on FEMA’s flood map.
  • Ask the seller or landlord whether it has ever flooded, and what flood insurance costs there.
  • Get a flood insurance quote early: policies usually start 30 days after you buy.
When a storm is coming
Forecast and alertsWeather →911, the nearest ERSafety →

Know where neighbors sign up for alerts? Add it to the Handbook so everyone has it.

Questions about natural hazards in Virgil Township

Is Virgil Township at risk for natural disasters?

On FEMA’s National Risk Index, Virgil Township has lower expected damage per building than 74% of U.S. towns: B+ for hazard risk. Most of the expected damage is river and rain flooding (81%) and tornadoes (14%). The figures are for the one census tract the town shares with its neighbors. This is FEMA’s model of an average year for today’s buildings, not a forecast.

Is Virgil Township in a flood zone?

Flood zones are drawn street by street, so the answer depends on the address: look it up on FEMA’s flood map. In Kane County, 28% of homes in mapped flood zones carry federal flood insurance, and 0.4% of all homes do.

How much is flood insurance in Virgil Township?

FEMA’s Community Rating System list shows no discount for Virgil Township’s flood program. Premiums depend on the building; policies usually start 30 days after you buy, so get a quote early.

What was the biggest storm in Virgil Township?

By FEMA money that reached Virgil Township, Illinois Winter Snow Storms (2000): $6K to Virgil Township for repairs.

Is Virgil Township at risk from river and rain flooding?

It is the largest share of the building damage FEMA expects here (81%), and Virgil Township’s rate for it is lower than 53% of U.S. census tracts.

Storm stories

Memories, warnings and help from neighbors in Virgil Township.

Town Square →
Start the conversation

Sources: FEMA National Risk Index v1.20 (December 2025), census-tract table, combined by where Virgil Township’s residents lived in the 2020 census; OpenFEMA: NFIP redacted claims, multiple-loss properties, community status book and residential penetration rates, housing assistance (owners and renters), public assistance funded projects, hazard mitigation properties and disaster declarations. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. Preparedness tips: Ready.gov. FEMA’s model is an average of expected damage, not a forecast. How hazard risk is graded.